ther is in the Church of Christ no such Monarchie ordaynyd by Christe. And the preemmenence of sitting, that was gyffen to the Bishop off Rome in the forsaid Counsels general, which was callyd al by the Emperors off that tyme, was gyffen to hym by cause he was Bishop of Rome, the cheffe Cite off the Empire, and not for Peter and Paule's sake, which wer Apostyles, and bernyd in Rome, nor for the Gospell-sake; and the secund place was gyffen to the Patriarch off Constantinople, by cause that Cite was called Nova Roma, and so was preferryd both before Antiochia, wher Sainte Petyr was first Bishop, and wher the Name of Cristendom first began; and also before Alexandria, where Sainte Marke, the Disciple off Petyr did preche. And also before Hierusalem, wher Crist himselfe preched, and the hole Colledge off the Apostles afftyr him; And Jacobus frater Domini was first Bishop, which was in the beginning untill it was destroyed, callyd Maier cunctarnm Ecclesiarum, which Three ware Sees Apostolyke. Befor al which three Sees, and also before Ephesus, where Sainte John Evangelest did write his Gospell, and ther dyed, Constantinople was preferry'd, because it was the second grete Congregation off Cristen Men in the Empire, and was callyd Nova Roma. Wherunto those holy Counsels wold never have consentyd, and namely Calcedonense wherin wer vj C. and xxx Bisheps of the best lernyd off al Cristendome, yff they had seen the Gospell to the contrary. Moreover, yff ye rede, as I am sure ye have, Basilium, Nazianzenum, Chrissostomum, Damassenum, ye shal fynd in them no such Monarche off the Bishope off Rome, as he clamyth, spoken off nor never mentioned. Al which I touch to put you in remembrance off, to the intent that ye serchinge forther in this matter, may perceive the old Fadyrs and Counsels, not to have knowen any such thinge as now off late is pretentyd and usurped.

Wherfore I beseech you, not trustinge your own self to mych herin, to have recourse to those Autors that may informe you off the begynning off the Church. Consydering therwithall of what Blood ye be, and off what Contre. The King's Hyghnes hath in his Realme Men as wel lernyd in Divinite as be in odyr Countreys, and they have sougth in this Mater, evyn to the bothome; which think themselfs wel delyvered from the Bondage off Rome. And yff you shuld now be against your Contre to kepe them still in Captivite, what they wyll thyńke off you, I reporte me unto you. What also the King's Grace, who hath brogth you up, and hath bene good and gracyous unto you, shal thynke, but

that ye be unkynd, to be against him and hys Realme, who hath been always for your and yours. What discomford shold it be to my Lady your Modyr, in hir Age to see you swarve from your Prince and Contre in Opinion. What Discomford shold it be to my Lord your Brother, to see you off whom he should have comford, use your Learning to his Discomford. What Discomford shold it be to all your other Frendys to see you off obstinate Opinion against al your Countrey, you may by your Wisdom consider. Whom all ye may comfort and chiefly your self, in conformyng you to the Truthe grounded opon the Stablishment off the holly Church of Christendome sens the Begynnyng. And beynge the Supporting of this Monarchie inventyd off late Days by Ambition, wheroff the old Fadyrs never hard tell. St. Gregorie wryteth sore against the Bishop off Constantinople off his time, who went about a lyke Monarchie, affirmyng noone such to be in the Church of Christ. Saint Cyprian wryteth, qui omnes Apostoli erunt Paris honoris et potestatis. Consilium Ephesinum affirmyth the same, which cannot agree with thys late found Monarchie. At the reverence of God truste not your self to much herein, but suffer your self to be persuaded to seke fordyr then ye yet have doon. I dobt not but God willing ye shall fynd the Truth in searchynge fordyr, yff ye persuade not your selfe that ye have found it already. I beseche you, have in your remembrance, that I wrote before to burn the Originally off your to sharp Bokes, and I shall move the King's Hyghness that your Boke sent to hym may be kept secret. And in conformyng your self to the Opinion off your Contre and off the Truth, I doubt not but ye shall be acceptyd of the King's Highness as well as ever ye wer, and mych bettyr bycause ye shew in your Boke the intier Hert that ye bere hym, as his Grace by his Wisdome can mych better consider than I can write unto you. And that ye may so do I pray the Holy Ghost to illuminat you. And if ther be pleasure that I may do for you or yours, ye shall be assured to fynd me redy evermore therunto: as knoweth Almighty God, who have you in his Blessed Tuition.

From London the xiij Day of July, 1536.

LIII.

An Original Letter of Pole's to Cromwell, justifying himself.

(Cotton Lib. Cleop. E. 6, P. 355.)

May the 2d, 1537.

My Lorde, yff afore tyme itt could not be suerlye and cleerlye peceived what Affectyon I have ever borne to the Kyng's Honour and Wealthe, which in my hole Lyfe never gave the least Occasyon, whye any man shoulde think, but wyth them that tendery'd the same moste, I myght chieflye be nombery'd: yf my Deeds were trulye and indyfferentlye examined: but howe soever ytt be, yff any Dede afore perverslye interpretate myght ryse any Scrupell to surmise the contrary, surely these Letters that I wryght now, as the Time and Case requirithe, bearyng that Tenour as in Readyng you shall knowe, be suffycyent not onely to abolyshe all former Doubts, shewing those to be perversly surmysed, but to make clere, that a more constant and stable Mynde in observance off a Prince, hathe not bene founde nother'yn Subject nor other Personnes besyde. And the Cause hereoff ys, that there never happened lyke Occasyon as thys ys, that causythe me nowe to wryght, wherebye my Mynd myght be so well knowen, while Occasion ys gyven off the Kyng's Part under this Maner, that he procureing against me, by such Meanes to my Undoynge, as was never hard off the lyke in Chrystendome against anye, that bare that Personne that I do att this tyme. Yff my Minde, after all this remain stable, to procure all Things that may be to his Honour and Wealthe, as ever I have professy'd afore-tyme, what can be more suerer Tokyn off a depe and a profound grounded Love and Affection: Whither I do so I shall afterward showe you. If I declare first to Hym that knoweth it beste, the Kyng's Act ageynst me, to the Entent you maye knowe, yff I after that remayne yn my Old Estate off Observance, ytt is not for Ignorance that I knowe not what is machinate ageinst me. And suerly, thoughe I knewe afore bothe by your Letters and other in what Displeasure the King had me, without the least Cause shewed off my part; I take God and my Conscience to judge, which thynge, iff I had borne but a meane Affectiyon myght a been suffycyent to alyenate also my Mynde from thence, where I sawe what soever I dyd for the best, to be ever accepted in the worst Parte. But this I wyll not have yowe take for any Proffe off my Mynde, but to procede off the Kyng's Dyspleasure toward me; the VOL. III, PART II.

lesse I knowe the Cause to be, the further I was from all Imagynacyon to suspect that hys Grace should be so incensy'd against my Personne; that for to have me in his Hands, he wold be content to breke and vyolate both Godd's Law and Mann's, to dystuourbe all Commercement betwene Contrye and Contrye, between Man and Man, and thys I would never a thought: but fyndyng the same to be so in Dede, I could not but fynde wythall, howe hys Grace was bent with all to my utter undoynge; agaynst the which yff I remayne in my old Purpose to procure hys Wealthe and Honour, he that wyll seke other Proffs after thys, or wyll not be content with thys Declaracyon off a Mann's Mynde, he declareth with all that wythe no Proffe he wyll be content, but wyll have him one off hys Enemies whither he wyll or no. And off this Mynde off the Kynge toward me I had furst knowledge at myne arryvenge in France, off the whiche to showe youe the first Motion of my Mind herein, 1 was more ashamyd to hear for the Compassion I had to the King's Honour, then movyd by any Indygnacyon, that I comyng not only as Imbassadour, but as Legate, yn the hyghest Sort of Embassage that ys used amongst the Chrysten Princes, a Prynce off Honour shold desyer off another Prince off like Honour, betray thyne Embassadour, betray the Legate, and give him into my Embassadour's Hands to be brought unto me. This was the dishonourable Request, as I understand, of the King; which (as I said afore) to me suerly, regarding my own Part, I promes'd you was no great Displeasure, but rather (if I shall say Truth) I toke Pleasure herein; and said furthwith to my Company, that I never felt my self in_full Possession to be a Cardinall, as when I herd those Tydings; wherby it pleased God to send lyke fortune to me, as it did to those Hedds of the Church, whose Persones the Cardynalls do represent, which was to be persecutyd moste of them, whose Wealth they labouryd for most busyly. In this Case lyved the Apostells: And the same nowe beyng happenyd to me, afore God I promise I felt no Displeasure, but rather was glad thereof, "specially consedyryng herebye I hadd the better Occasyon to declare and justyfie my Minde more then ever I had afore, which was ever my Minde more then ever I had afore, which was ever my Minde: but touching the thynge, iff we had no other Religion, but lyved as Paganes and Infidells, yet Jus Gentium should ever teache us what Demande this was, the Lawe of Nature alone myght declare how abhomynable ytt were to grante to such a Request, and no less to desyer ytt. This I rehearse now to this Intent that you might the sooner perceve, that if there had been but one

Sparke of a Mynde alienate from the Kyng, thys were able to set the same in such a Fyer, that furst consideringe how all Regarde off Honour was sett aparte, and the Law that maintaineth the Commercement between Man purposyd to be violate, so yet myght torne to my undoing. Furst of all of my part, I shuld abstaine from all Commercement with that Part, other by Word, Writing, or Debe; Secondorylye, procure by all honest Wayes, if I wolde not by dishonest, to repaye this Malignytie, to the uttermost Damage I could devyse toward them, of whose malygne Minde towarde me I had so greate Experyence: And yett after all this, furst of all, youe may see forthwythe by wrytyng att this tyme, I doe nott abstayne from the furst Acte to practyse and entreate, wyth them that hathe bene Authors hereof, and to practyse yett to hys Honour and Wealthe, which wold utterlie extinguyshe both in me. And if I be herd herein, to put the same also in Execution; which Thing thoughe I do suerlie of my owne Purpose and Mynd, yet some Occasion hereof, howe it cometh otherwise I will not denye, nor kepe close, which is this; That whereas the Bishope of Verona, that was sent of me to the Frenche Court, to intimate those Affaires, that for the Wealthe of Chrystendome, the Pope had committed unto me, to entreate with his Majestie, in his Retourne passynge by Abbevylle, where were lodged my Lorde of Wynchester, and Mr. Bryan; whereas he could not but gretlie marvayle of this Acte of the Kyng toward me, my hole Legation purposing no other but his Honour and Weltche: And desiereng therefore to conferre the same with the Embassadours, for better Declaracyon of the Truthe of the Mattiers, to be known as they were: My Lord of Wynchester, and Mr. Bryan, both abstaynenge for Respect from all Communycation, yet sending unto him theyre Secretarye, after the Bishope had in parte declared the Effect of my Legacie, that touched then any part the Kyng, yet semed to be open to bothe Parties, that all the King had done agaynst me, was of the sinistre and false Reports of other, that by false Conjecture of Things they knewe not, had ill enfourmed the King of my Purpose in comyng into these Partes, which the Secretarys thought onys clered and declaryd, other by Letters or Messingers, the Kyng wold turne his Mynde, as his Grace sawe the Deds to justifie themselfs. This the Bishope of Verona (at his Retourne) showed me; which I accepted in that Parte to be trewe also, that all came of evill Enformacion. And that his Grace being assertayned of my Mynd, as it is and ever hath bene, it were not unpossyble then some Part to knowledge rather my Gratitude, than to machynate